Official LaserVue Owners thread - Page 83

I've got the 91, but Dish Network - be happy to help/compare if you can't find an exact match.

So. Looks like Mitsubishi is out, and LG is in: http://reviews.cnet.com/home-theater-projectors/lg-hecto-laser-projector/4505-7858_7-35558335.html
Basically a reverse RP system with a laser light source. I wonder if they licensed it from Mits.

I do what is up?

Sorry about previous post...so I am clear I have Direct TV and I have a L75-A91.

To those considering adding filter material to their Laservue:

Perhaps I misunderstood what was posted earlier, maybe the A96 is built differently, but the side of the TV with the fans is an exhaust NOT an intake.

In the back there is a 24" x 8" panel that allows air to flow in and the side with the inputs has an arrangement of grating for air flow too.
That's assuming that air doesn't also come in elsewhere I'm not seeing.

Really it's a chore to add filters, not a simple one piece job.
The back panel is probably most important, but I question if it's enough to make a difference.

Well I have given up on the idea of attaching any filters to this TV to try to prolong its life. However, I am now very aware about how easily "dust" can destroy the light source assembly and I decided that once-a-month I will vacuum each of the 3 air passages (on the back and both sides) as long as it lasts. But next time our Laservue has a major malfunction (hopefully no sooner than 2-3 years from now) I will replace it with whatever large-screen TV is being sold then since our Laservue will be out-of-warranty by then.

It took Mitsubishi longer than 6 weeks to repair our TV recently after we called in the problem and this experience left us with a bitter aftertaste. (The good news is that it now has a better picture than when we first bought it.)
Edited by Upgrader - 1/4/13 at 11:21pm

Well Mits is out of the business now, so in 2-3 years a RP is unlikely to be an option. As is Mitsubishi.
Hard to believe.

Techie question.

UHD is coming (and is pretty much useless, but that's an argument for another thread).
I noticed that Sony is bringing out triluminous/quantum dot lighting technology (which sounds like a cool variation on laser tech).

They are putting in their UHD TVs as well as the W900a (which is standard HD). What is important is taht it can produce a higher color gamut, which is probably so they can use the Rec.2020 color palette of UHD.

I know the LaserVues have a wider color gamut that is pointless if you've calibrated.
My question is, when 4k sources appear, even if a LaserVue can only achieve 1080p, would it be able to reproduce the Rec.2020 colors?

Do we need to start lobbying for a firmware update now before Mits stops caring?

Hi Dream,

I am having the exact same issues! This TV is little over 2 years old and I have no extended warranty. I will wait until it gets worse before I call Mitsubishi. Damn...4800 spent on this device. Not sure what i will do if I have to buy a new TV.

I wouldn't wait, Sir_Mark. Mitsubishi is getting out of the rear projection market. Since it takes months to get satisfaction from customer service, you should start now to make sure you can get the parts you need.

Thanks DoctorM. You are so right; I will call them early next week. In the meantime it might be time to think of a replacement...perhaps the Samsung F8000.

Has anyone figured out which DLP chip the Laservue uses so that we may find replacements on ebay for us DIYers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyAykjZ3zs4

Kinda thinking of modifying the heatsink to liquid cooling so dust blockage and heat transfer are not an issue... (sounds like a lot of trouble but I would like to prolong my investment)

Also, is there an obtainable service manual with the breakdown of all servicable parts and part numbers?
Edited by gunn234 - 1/27/13 at 4:16am

Well...I suppose we'll be fighting them together then...I'm sure if there are two of us, there are quite a few more that don't post. I'm waiting until after the Superbowl to start dealing with it because there have been too many "it's taking months to get this resolved" stories and I don't want the primary set out of commission during my S.B. party. But, I'll need to start on it quickly thereafter because I spent too much to let it slide.

Thanks, and I'll try to keep you abreast of what I hear, hopefully you can do the same.

I have the A91 & DirecTV. What's your issue?

You said they took the back or part of the TV off to clean inside. My TV has started shutting off after about 20 minutes. Is this cleaning something I can do? What part should I remove? I see the fans are running fine and I don't see a lot of dust blocking the vents, but I am sure there is some inside.

Thanks

David

Viper,

It looks like you need a new Light Source Assembly. I had the exact same problem and it took almost 2 months to get it fixed.

This TV is good for about 2 years without cleaning. With regular vacuuming/cleaning we could probably extend its life some (3 years?) The dust accumulating inside will eventually kill the LSA.

Please tell me that isn't true!
I think it's time to try adding the filter material again.

There is a store near me that has a A91 for $2200. Is this a good deal? I was looking at maybe a VT50 but the size and price of the A91 has my attention. How is this set for video games? I'll be playing a lot of xbox360 and ps3. Thanks

I will let others chime in, but encourage you to search back through the thread for mine and several others' comments. High graphic and/or movement games have caused stuttering issues. I remember a post about music games as well and how it was so bad as to be unplayable even when trying to calibrate the game to the TV. I myself have found (over several Laservue models) that you have to us the Game mode setting (which makes sense I guess, but would be nice to play in the calibrated ADV modes) and even then there are occasional hiccups that are caused by TV and not console.

Also, be aware that these TVs were discontinued relatively quickly, Mitsu has gone through 3 other models rather rapidly (92, 94, 96), and is now out of the RP TV game for good.

So, I called the store I bought it from and told them about the issues. We'll see what happens, they are "discussing it with their techs". The call was hilarious, though.

Lady on phone: "so what are your issues?"
Me: "the light output has dimmed and the TV is pulsing through different red levels."
Lady on phone: "You probably need to change the lamp."
Me: "uhhh..."
Lady on phone: "The lamp isn't covered under warranty."
Me: "uhhh...lady, you realize there is no lamp in this set, right? And, for the record, the biggest reason I bought it was so I didn't have to change lamps. I didn't want to have to deal with diminishing performance as the lamp ages -- but that's not working out so well, so I want your guys out here to fix this thing or replace it, because I paid a lot for this TV *not* to have to deal with lamps and here I am, having similar issues as I would with a lamp based set, yet no ability to fix it myself."
Lady on phone: "Oh, ok, sorry sir...I will contact a tech and we'll be in touch."

Ugh.... Good to know they use canned scripts for all their RP models, lol.

Anyway, we'll see...I'll give them a few days to get back in touch, and then call again with escalation.

Does anyone else think Mits was stupid to get out of this market so soon?

I say SOON because I could easily see a LaserVue with the DLP chip swapped for a 4k DLP and the existing enhanced color gamut translating to the Rec.2020 of UHD.

Seriously, a chip swap and firmware update and Mits would have a 4k TV at half the price of the competition.
One more thing that makes me .

Have had a Laser A91 for close to 3 years with no problems until November got white spots. Fortunately have a 4 year square trade warranty. After a month or so they finally authorized a replacement chip. The service people came out. It took them a LONG time to get to the chip (about an hour), including removing the light engine. They had a lot of trouble reaching some of the screws. They replaced the chip and all the other parts. The white spots were gone and I was very happy.

But on careful viewing I noticed about a 3" dia. circular light smudge towards the lower left corner. Clearly visible on light background scenes, but not on busy backgrounds. This was definitely not present prior to the chip replacement. They did not wear cotton gloves, and I am not sure if it could have been something which was touched, or a dust particle? One tech thought it was a defective replacement chip. But the head tech thought it was the light engine, and has ordered a new one. I am not sure that makes sense.

The picture had been so fabulous before the white spots, and I am concerned that they might make it worse!

Any thoughts?

ps. I unknowing first posted this in the general rear projection section, I wanted to post it here. I will try to remove it from there.

Hi Dream,

Did you ever get your Laservue fixed?

I decided I am going to buy a new TV. Most likely an 80" Sharp either the current 2012 model or the new 2013 one. I was looking at the 80le844u in BB this weekend and I thought the picture looked as good as my L75-A91 laservue. Once calibrated it should look even better. I also looked at the Samsung 75es9000. That TV has a really nice picture, but not $4K better IMHO. Still, the new Samsungs are suppose to look even better, so maybe I might spent $8K plus lol.

Peace.

They are coming out next Tuesday to take a look and determine what they need to do. I think I'm going to try to take a pretty firm stance that they have one shot to fix it. I paid too much for this set to deal with multiple repairs in one month (or more) intervals. It will be a month before they get out to look at it, probably another before they have parts to attempt a repair. So, if that doesn't fix it, I think I'm going to make it a point that they have to replace it with something equal or better. Either another newer version of the Laservue, or something of equivalent size, probably the Samsung 75" or the Sharp 80" that you're interested in. I suppose it would depend how much of a difference in price they'll make me pay. We'll see...

That said, keep us informed about how your transition goes. I'm really interested in the Sharp sets, but I'm really worried that they may have even worse lag and processing issues than the Laservue does for my gaming. I really enjoy playing my stupid music games and this set is bad with them, but I've become used to it, to get a set that's even worse would kill me, lol.

I may be able to help you both out! Update on mine - tech tried multiple calls to Mitsubishi to try and figure out cause of issues with no luck. Since they had replaced both the main board and the light engine, and since this would be my fifth laservue, warranty company decided to buy me out instead and is sending me a Sharp 80LE844U as exchange. Should have it in a couple weeks and will be able to do some side by side comparisons. I'm a big gamer as well, so will be looking at their 'game' mode and any lag quite critically. I don't want to take the LV thread too far off topic so can either PM you both or maybe do the posts on the 8444U thread. Happy to answer any specific questions either of you have to help in your choices.

That said, I think the cautionary tale on the Mitsubishi LV sets is important for would-be buyers to be aware of. Amazing set when it works well, but potential for being quite the headache as well.
Edited by SJCoruja - 2/19/13 at 10:19pm

Isn't a Sharp Elite more comparable to a LaserVue? Heard some pretty mediocre things about the Sharp 800 series.

That would be awesome...as for taking the thread off track, to be quite honest, I think a comparison between the two would be fine right here in this thread...just as fine as it would be in the Sharp thread. Plus, I'm betting there will be more of us with issues down the road that will be curious what best to replace it with, unfortunately. Further, this thread's been pretty dead lately anyway, so...maybe your insight will liven it up .

That said, I really do hope they can fix it. I really did like the set quite a bit when it worked. It was a bit annoying sometimes with games, but nothing I didn't get used to eventually. Plus, I have a feeling the Sharp sets will bring a whole new set of gaming annoyances if they introduce significantly more delay. Besides that, I still find RP to have the most natural movie-like picture of any other set. Even my wife doesn't really like LCD sets because she thinks they look phony. It probably has a lot to do with the insane sharpness and pixel structure, which is more occluded in the natural softness of the LV (or I suppose any RP) set. But, that never bothered me. In fact, I quite liked the slightly softer image in exchange for the other issues with LCD sets. And, while I really like plasma, they just don't have the size.... Give me a 75" or 80" plasma and I'm in....but, it isn't going to happen for any cost I can afford. I can't step down to 65", right now I sit about 15' from the set, and if I went LCD/Plasma I'd wall mount so I could more easily fit a center the way I want, which would push it back another 3' from where the set sits now, putting me 18' away. At that distance, I need 80" or more, I feel. Heck, I'd take a 90" in a second, but I'm not thrilled enough with that particular Sharp at the moment for the money.... The 4k 84" sets may be nice, but not at > $10k -- the wife would kill me, lol. So....ugh :-(.
Edited by DreamWarrior - 2/20/13 at 9:31pm

Agreed, but didn't want to go down in size or up in cost. Mine will be a warranty replacement, and will be an even exchange for the Sharp 844U. From what I've read, with proper calibration, it produces a great image and I think I'll be quite happy with it.

On a side note, circling back on that artifact issue we had, I have a different 'fix' for the artifact issue we were having that doesn't require moving the screen position. The tech and I spent quite some time troubleshooting to try and find a pattern, and (at least in our testing) the issue went away every time when we switched inputs. So, for example, if we were watching the DVR and the issue appeared and then switched to blu-ray and back again, the issue went away. I had assembled a collection of DVR segments, blu-ray scenes, and others (including your clip, thanks) and we were able to remove it every time. Now switching between inputs was annoying as hell when you're trying to watch something so your fix is probably more acceptable since the screen isn't too far off, but thought I'd share in case others find same issue.

Hey, thanks for asking about that issue. It really is a head scratcher and I suspect more prevalent than most people are noticing.
For now it works and this LaserVue came at a great price. I wouldn't want to get back on the exchange carousel again for anything.

The key is filter I use Poly filter and I cut it and install it in the back and in the side that have the plugs in. My Mit had white spots and it call; for a new light engine, so when the tech. took it a part, there is a cooling condenser where the to big fans are, and let mi tell you the thins of the condenser were plugged with dust. we us an small brush and then blow it with air. also there is an small fan on the bottom of the light engine to cool the engine, and it was plugged with dirt.
What I suggest is use filter because the main failure of this TVs is dirt. You could use a vacuum but what about the fan under the light engine. mine A91 look 100% better since they install the new light engine. It look that the components were update it.